1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a radiation emitting device, and more particularly to a system and a method for determining an efficient process for radiation treatment.
2. Description of the Related Art
Radiation-emitting devices are generally known and used, for instance, as radiation therapy devices for the treatment of patients. A radiation therapy device usually comprises a gantry which can be swiveled around a horizontal axis of rotation in the course of a therapeutic treatment. A linear accelerator is located in the gantry for generating a high-energy radiation beam for therapy. This high energy radiation beam can be an electron radiation or photon (X-ray) beam. During treatment, this radiation beam is trained on a zone of a patient lying in the isocenter of the gantry rotation.
To control the radiation emitted toward an object, a beam-shielding device such as a plate arrangement and/or collimator is usually provided in the trajectory of the radiation beam between the radiation source and the object. An example of a plate arrangement is a set of four plates which can be used to define an opening for the radiation beam. The beam-shielding device defines a field on the object to which a prescribed amount of radiation is to be delivered. A collimator is a beam-shielding device which could include multiple leaves (e.g., 50 leaves). These leaves are positioned to accurately direct the radiation beam toward the area to be treated with radiation. While these leaves provide accurate direction, they also allow for a small amount of undesirable radiation leakage. This leakage occurs between the leaves.
The delivery of radiation by a radiation therapy device is prescribed and approved by an oncologist. Actual operation of the radiation equipment, however, is normally done by a therapist. When the therapist administers the actual delivery of the radiation treatment as prescribed by the oncologist, the radiation-emitting device is programmed to deliver that specific treatment. When programming the treatment, the therapist has to take into consideration the actual radiation output and has to adjust the dose delivery based on the plate arrangement opening to achieve the prescribed radiation treatment at the target depth in the object. This adjustment can be made according to known calculations, but the therapist normally has to do them manually, which can lead to errors. In the context of radiation therapy, a miscalculation can lead to either a dose that is too low and is ineffective, or that is too high and dangerous; a large error (e.g., a misplaced decimal point) can be lethal.
What is needed is a method, and a corresponding system, for efficient and accurate delivery of radiation treatment. Also, a system which minimizes radiation treatment time and reduces radiation leakage is desired.